The Welfare Program

Luxottica systematically monitors the socio-demographic profiles of its employees and make comparisons with quality of life indexes in parts of Italy where there are industrial districts (Veneto, Trentino Alto Adige, Piemonte).

On the basis of data collected in the last few years, Luxottica saw that despite the increase in nominal salaries – the fruit of good economic results and constructive relations with trade unions – employees’ effective purchasing power had gradually decreased. The situation was threatening employees’ capacity to meet both basic day to day needs and longer term expenses typically associated with consolidating a given quality of life whilst aiming to improve it in the future (eg. education and health).

Luxottica’s “More Value for Employees” program grew out of a widespread awareness that maintenance of purchasing power, more than nominal pay, was the problem and that industry and government could no longer afford not to act. The basic idea behind the initiative was therefore to make greater use of non monetary remuneration and offer a basket of goods and services immediately meeting the primary needs of employees and their families, thus ensuring the quality of life that a workforce must enjoy to be able to maintain its productivity.

Such considerations led Luxottica to develop an innovative compensation model to operate alongside traditional incentive systems. The offer of goods and services increases purchasing power at least twice as much as monetary remuneration.
The amount of funds the organization dedicates to this initiative is tied to its capacity to maintain continuous improvement of quality (products and processes), the ultimate factor of excellence and distinction of “Made in Italy” on world markets.
The “More Value for Employees” program was activated in 2009 and will gradually enable employees to enjoy the following goods and services:

• personal shopping card for food and other day to day consumables;
• preventive and diagnostic medical services;
• dentistry, pediatric and specialist medical care;
• transport;
• social services;
• grants for schooling expenses;
• scholarships.

An internal governance committee, whose members include trade union representatives, was set up to oversee the Program. It defines priorities and allocates funds accordingly.